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Chelmsford eyes full-day kindergarten

CHELMSFORD -- The town is looking into whether it could finally join a trend toward offering full-day kindergarten in its schools, something nearly every other school district in Greater Lowell has.

Not much more than a decade ago, more than two-thirds of the state's kindergartners were enrolled in half-day programs. More than four out of five now do.

"We're definitely in the minority," said Chelmsford Superintendent of Schools Frank Tiano, who is co-chairing a committee looking into the feasibility of adding full-day kindergarten.

Chelmsford has been considering expanding kindergarten hours for a few years, but among the factors to consider are space and staffing, something a consultant is helping the district with. Whether the schools have even the space to have kindergarten full-day is not yet determined, Tiano said.

"Right now, it's an investigation," he said.

Mitchell Chester, the state commissioner of elementary and secondary education, said in a report last year that full-day kindergarten is a "key component" of an early-care and education system for children through third grade.

"Kindergarten is the threshold year in children's lives and education," he said, "merging home, nonpublic and public early-education and care and preschool programs into the public-education system."

In 2000, 29 percent of Massachusetts kindergarten students were enrolled in full-day programs. That year, the state began a grant program to help school districts in the costly transition to full-day.

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By 2012, 83 percent of students were in full-day kindergarten.

A number of Lowell-area school districts were among 162 statewide that received $22 million in grants in 2012, mostly to keep full-day programs free, but 11 received grants to transition to full-day.

Dracut, Lowell and Wilmington were grant recipients but each kept the same number of full-day classes offered free to students. Ayer-Shirley added an extra full-day class.

Other districts charge for students to enroll in full-day programs, from $3,000 a year in Billerica to $4,730 in Groton and Dunstable.

The state average charge is $2,970, according to the state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. Of the state's 283 districts that offer full-day kindergarten, 77 charge extra for it.

Chelmsford is practically alone in the Lowell area as a district that does not offer full-day kindergarten, according to the state education department and local school districts.

A few districts that now offer full-day only with an added tuition are looking to offer it without the extra charge.

Rosamond Dorrance, principal of the Heath Brook School in Tewksbury, said parents at the school seem to be happy with whichever option they chose, either full- or half-day. Some parents prefer having their children in school for only half-days because they like to have more one-on-one time with them at home, she said.

"Really, it's what best fits the family," Dorrance said.

The Tewksbury school district has been working hard to find a way to offer full-day free for families, Dorrance said.

In Littleton, the school district is also looking to find whether full-day programs are feasible, said Rich Faherty, the principal of the Shaker Lane Elementary School, where about 84 of the roughly 100 students enrolled in kindergarten attend full-day.

Some parents prefer only half-day, Faherty said, but more would likely opt for full-day if tuition were removed.

Chelmsford has made full-day kindergarten one of the main initiatives in its five-year strategic plan. The committee overseeing the work will visit area school districts that offer full-day kindergarten, explore grant options and develop a proposal for a pilot. Results from a parent survey are being reviewed.

Michael LaCava, the principal of the Harrington Elementary School and member of the district committee, said he's heard from parents who appreciate the measured approach to extending kindergarten and for seeking public input.

"As a principal, I hear pretty consistently every year, 'Why isn't there a full-day kindergarten' or 'Are you looking into doing full-day?' " he said.

Whether full-day kindergarten in Chelmsford would be free is among the details being considered, Tiano said. According to the district's strategic plan, full-day kindergarten could start on a pilot basis in the 2013-2014 school year and be in place by the following year.

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